The only possible recourse a baby has when his screams are ignored is to repress his distress, which is tantamount to mutilating his soul, for the result is an interference with his ability to feel, to be aware, and to remember.
Alice MillerRead
All children are born to grow, to develop, to live, to love, and to articulate their needs and feelings for their self-protection
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes the fundamental rights of children to grow and express themselves for their well-being.
Alice Miller's quote highlights the natural progression of children as they evolve through growth and development. It asserts that children have inherent rights not only to love and live, but also to communicate their needs and emotions, which is essential for their self-protection. This perspective champions the importance of nurturing environments where children can flourish and be heard.
Themes
ChildrenGrowthDevelopmentLoveSelf-ProtectionExpression
In practice
Example use cases
During a parenting workshop, one might use this quote to discuss the importance of supporting children's emotional expression.
More from Alice Miller
All quotes →The truth about childhood, as many of us have had to endure it, is inconceivable, scandalous, painful. Not uncommonly, it is monstrous. Invariably, it is repressed. To be confronted with this truth all at once and to try to integrate it into our consciousness, however ardently we may wish it, is clearly impossible.
Alice MillerRead
We don't yet know, above all, what the world might be like if children were to grow up without being subjected to humiliation, if parents would respect them and take them seriously as people.
Alice MillerRead
I have never known a patient to portray his parents more negatively than he actually experienced them in childhood but always more positively--because idealization of his parents was essential for his survival.
Alice MillerRead
It is not true that evil, destructiveness , and perversion inevitably form part of human existence, no matter how often this is maintained. But it is true that we are daily producing more evil and, with it, an ocean of suffering for millions that is absolutely avoidable. When one day the ignorance arising from childhood repression is eliminated and humanity has awakened, an end can be put to this production of evil.
Alice MillerRead
Genuine forgiveness does not deny anger but faces it head-on.
Alice MillerRead
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